CJP's Abhijeet Dipke spends Diwali night at airport after Kochi anti-SIR protest

Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke said on Sunday that he spent the night at an airport, waiting for a delayed connecting flight as he tried to return home from an anti-Special Intensive Revision (SIR) protest in Kochi in time for Diwali.

Dipke shared the experience while responding to a post by Nationalist Congress Party (SP) spokesperson Anish Gawande on X. Gawande had written about his fondness for visiting airports during Diwali, saying he enjoyed seeing people dressed in festive clothes and exchanging smiles.

“I love going to the airport on Diwali. It's always so lovely to see everyone dressed up in their festive finest and to see everyone smiling at each other. I've forgotten how fun it can be to walk through an airport when you're in a good mood!” Gawande wrote.

Responding to him, Dipke described a rather different experience, saying he was sleep-deprived after spending the night waiting for his connecting flight.

“Meanwhile, I spent the night at an airport, sleep-deprived and waiting for a delayed connecting flight. Just desperately trying to get home from the Kochi protest so my mom wouldn’t kill me for missing Diwali. Such a lovely festive experience,” he posted.

Dipke also shared updates from his journey on Instagram on Sunday, posting pictures from a flight and an auto-rickshaw ride with the caption, “Delayed flights, connecting flights.” He added, “Spiderman: Trying to get home on time for Diwali.”

In another Instagram post featuring a picture from his flight, the CJP founder wished his followers a peaceful festival, writing, “Wish you all a 'kalesh-free' Diwali.”

CJP takes anti-SIR campaign to Kochi

Dipke had travelled to Kerala to attend the CJP's 'Jantar Mantar at Kochi' campaign on Saturday. The protest was organised against the SIR of electoral rolls and sought the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar.

The programme began with a march from Marine Drive to Rajendra Maidan, led by actor and activist Prakash Raj. Around 500 activists took part in the rally, according to the organisers, while hundreds of young people, civil rights activists and other citizens joined the demonstration. Participants carried the national flag and raised slogans demanding the withdrawal of SIR and Kumar's resignation.

The gathering at Rajendra Maidan was addressed by Dipke, who reiterated his demand for an independent and impartial electoral system. He said the campaign against the CEC would continue until such a system was established in the country. Dipke also alleged that elections under Kumar's leadership could not be trusted and claimed that the Election Commission was favouring one political party.

The CJP founder reached Cochin International Airport at Nedumbassery at around 3.30 pm after a flight delay and proceeded directly to the protest venue. He also claimed that Kerala had the largest number of registered CJP members, based on the party's database.

The Kochi demonstration marked the party's first major public protest in South India following the police action against its leaders in Delhi last month.

CJP leaders faced police action in Delhi

Dipke was granted conditional bail in October, a day after he was detained and arrested while attempting to take out a Tiranga rally near Connaught Place in New Delhi.

CJP leaders Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das were also arrested around the same period after entering Jantar Mantar, which had been denotified as a designated protest site by the Delhi Police. The two leaders had breached the restricted area and waved the national flag in protest against the decision. They were subsequently released on October 21 after spending about a week in custody and giving an undertaking to a Special Executive Magistrate (SEM) that they would not organise further demonstrations at Jantar Mantar while it remained denotified.

Referring to the police action, Dipke had said he would continue carrying the Tricolour wherever he went.

The CJP had also extended support to the INDIA bloc's 'Chalo Dilli' march against alleged vote theft on November 1. However, it did not participate in the Opposition rally at Ramlila Maidan, with Dipke saying the party wanted to preserve its independent identity.

SIR row and Election Commission's response

The CJP's campaign against the SIR exercise comes amid a wider political controversy over the functioning of the Election Commission of India (ECI).

The row intensified after a report by The Indian Express said election commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had objected on record at least 14 times over a period of 10 months to decisions and orders concerning the SIR of electoral rolls. The objections reportedly related to decisions that the two commissioners said had been issued without their knowledge or recommendation.

The report prompted protests by the INDIA bloc and the CJP, both of which demanded the resignation of CEC Gyanesh Kumar.

The Election Commission, however, rejected allegations that Kumar had acted unilaterally. In its submission to the Supreme Court, the ECI maintained that all decisions concerning the SIR of electoral rolls had been taken unanimously by its three members.